A local telecom company received a grant Friday to expand broadband infrastructure in rural Freeborn County.

According to the Department of Employment and Economic Development, the $149,625 grant was awarded to BEVCOMM Cannon Valley Telecom.

The grant is expected to bring high-speed Internet to 43 homes and one business in rural Freeborn and boost economic development, specifically for crop and livestock production by boosting energy management, video surveillance, security, environmental monitoring, livestock feed and bin monitoring systems.

The total project is expected to cost $393,750. BEVCOMM is expected to cover the remaining $244,125, which is 62 percent of the project.

The Legislature approved $11 million in broadband grants during the 2015 legislative session according to District 27A Rep. Peggy Bennett, R-Albert Lea, in a press release. BEVCOMM was one of 15 greater Minnesota entities to receive the grant.

“Bringing broadband to unserved and underserved rural areas is a big economic development tool for greater Minnesota cities and towns,” Bennett said in a press release. “Thanks to state and federal funding, more money than ever will be coming to Minnesota to connect rural areas with high-speed internet access. I’m glad to see Freeborn County take advantage of the grant program, and hope we can build on our investments in broadband next session.”

Dan Dorman, executive director of the Greater Minnesota Partnership, said that although it was great the grant dollars were given out, there was lackluster funding for broadband in this year’s session and he is looking for more of an investment from the state government next year.

“The reality is we would like to see an investment of closer to $50 million,” Dorman said.

He said the grant also has a matching clause that initiates private funding.

Dorman said broadband access in rural Minnesota is lagging compared to the metro area, and access to broadband ties into economic development, job creation, median income and quality of life.

“We need to make sure everyone has access to reasonable broadband speed,” Dorman said.

“We need border-to-border broadband Internet access to build an economy that works for all Minnesotans,” said Lt. Governor Tina Smith. “Broadband Internet access isn’t just nice, it’s necessary for Minnesota businesses to grow and our students to thrive. While these grants are a good start, significant need remains.”

The program’s first round of funding awarded $19.4 million to 17 greater Minnesota communities in February.

The funding was awarded under the Border-to-Border Development Grant program, which Gov. Mark Dayton signed into law in May 2014. This year, DEED received 44 applications for funding. According to the state, recipients were selected based on an internal review and scoring process.